Winning the Masters is hard but it seems for one golfer, winning might have actually been easier than maintaining regular form around Augusta.
For most golfers, winning the Masters is a once in a lifetime experience and only very few players have managed to win more than once.
As we know, the top names like Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Scottie Scheffler and Phil Mickelson are all on that list, while a number of other greats are also holders of multiple green jackets.
One of those golfers is arguably the best player to ever emerge from the British Isles, Sir Nick Faldo.
Faldo won three Masters titles among his six majors between 1987 and 1996 and is 5th all time when it comes to wins on the European Tour.
However, while he has got three green jackets to his name and is one of the best to ever plot their way around Augusta, it seems those three occasions were out on their own in terms of his success at the Masters.
How Sir Nick Faldo won the Masters three times but never finished in the top ten again
When it comes to being one of the best to ever do it around Augusta, Nick Faldo is right up there with his three wins.
Crucially, Faldo is one of only three men – Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods being the others – to win the Masters two years running.
Of course, this year, Scottie Scheffler is bidding to become the first to win three in four years while sitting as world number one.
However, while the likes of Scheffler, Woods and Nicklaus have near imperious records around Augusta, Sir Nick Faldo’s other efforts outside his wins are average at best.
Indeed, Faldo played in 23 Masters tournaments overall, and outside of his three wins, he never actually finished inside the top ten.
Furthermore, after winning his last green jacket in 1996, he missed the cut at the next three Masters tournaments, before finishing in a tie for 28th in 2000 as Vijay Singh stormed home.
Sir Nick Faldo’s record at Augusta National
Of course, it’s not a criticism of Faldo to point out this fact and he’s even gone on record before as acknowledging it himself.
“Isn’t that a funny stat?” Faldo said back in 2023 when he had it put to him. “That’s how Augusta was for me. If I was doing the right things it was fine, but once the course gets to you it’s difficult to recover, even for the best players.”
Still, there were some near misses for Faldo in terms of getting that top ten without winning.
| Year | Position | Year | Position | Year | Position | Year | Position | Year | Position |
| 1979 | 40 | 1988 | T30 | 1994 | 32 | 2000 | T28 | 2006 | CUT |
| 1983 | T20 | 1989 | 1 | 1995 | T24 | 2001 | CUT | ||
| 1984 | T15 | 1990 | 1 | 1996 | 1 | 2002 | T14 | ||
| 1985 | T25 | 1991 | T12 | 1997 | CUT | 2003 | T33 | ||
| 1986 | NA | 1992 | T13 | 1998 | CUT | 2004 | CUT | ||
| 1987 | NA | 1993 | T39 | 1999 | CUT | 2005 | WD |
At the end of the day, though, Sir Nick Faldo remains a legend of golf and to have three green jackets puts him right in the upper echelons of the best to ever do it.
Looking back, he might have wanted a few more top tens but in reality, it matters little when you’ve had the success of Faldo.
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